Category Archives: Photographs: Northern California

Photographs from Northern California

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Trees At The Meadow

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Forest, Meadow, and Cliffs
A line of old, tall trees next to a Yosemite Valley meadow.

Trees At The Meadow. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A line of old, tall trees next to a Yosemite Valley meadow.

This comes from my one-day trip to Yosemite Valley and back — an ordeal I tolerate from time to time when something interesting is happening in the Valley and my schedule doesn’t permit a longer visit. This time I realized that the crowds of Memorial Day weekend and beyond were days away, and that I had not yet photographed the spring runoff. There are (obviously!) some downsides to driving 400 miles round-trip, starting around 3:00AM, photographing through the day, and not returning home until after midnight. One is that there are a lot of hours between the ideal early and late light.

I made this photograph during those midday hours. While these long trips require using some of this time for necessities such as napping and eating, I do wander and photograph a bit. Although it is harder of find photographs in this light, it isn’t impossible… and, for course, a bit of meandering on trails, even easy ones, can get me away from the worst of the congestion that is a feature of the Vally during the prime tourist season.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Blue Dicks Flowers

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Blue Dicks Flowers
A cluster of spring blue dicks blossoms.

Blue Dicks Flowers. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A cluster of spring blue dicks blossoms.

(Note: It has been brought to my attention that I may have misidentified these flowers as blue dicks. I’m checking on it and plan to update. For the record, I’m far, far from being an expert on flower identification!)

These beautiful – but oddly-named — wildflowers are all over the place in the San Francisco Bay Area during the spring months. They first appear during that magical period when the tall grasses are intensely green from winter rains, and then they stick around as the hills begin to turn brown or, as we like to say in California, “golden.” While I see these flowers every season, this was a banner year for them.

I often find individual blossoms or small groups blooming at the end of long, swaying stems. I like to photograph them from the side, often with some appropriate foliage background. But this group was so large and positioned low enough that I could photograph straight down into this nature bouquet, with its flowers in varying shades of blue and splayed out in all directions.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Trees and Haze, El Capitan

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Trees and Haze, El Capitan
Late-afternoon spring haze mutes the contours of El Capitan, standing beyond groups of Yosemite Valley trees.

Trees and Haze, El Capitan. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Late-afternoon spring haze mutes the contours of El Capitan, standing beyond groups of Yosemite Valley trees.

Near the end of my one-day (one very long day!) visit to Yosemite Valley the week before the Memorial Day crowds arrive, I visited a few spots in the lower Valley that are familiar to me. I went to this location mainly to photograph a flooded meadow that is surrounded by trees and from which granite cliffs are visible. These trees were silhouetted against the base of El Capitan, whose form and textures were muted by afternoon haze.

Haze can be the photographer’s enemy or friend. It certainly interferes if you are looking for clear, detailed photographs of distant subjects. On the other hand, it can accentuate the distance between objects, mute distant details to bring attention to closer subjects, and lend a moody emotion to a scene.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Dogwood Blossoms, Forest

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Dogwood Blossoms, Forest
Spring dogwoods bloom under the canopy of a Yosemite Valley forest.

Dogwood Blossoms, Forest. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Spring dogwoods bloom under the canopy of a Yosemite Valley forest.

I am almost embarrassed to admit that I wasn’t thinking about dogwood blossoms when I made plans to visit Yosemite Valley the week before the Memorial Day holiday. I was so focused on going to photograph the effects of the historic snow melt runoff that I completed forgot that the dogwoods would still be in bloom. On the bright side, it was quite a wonderful surprise to get to the Valley and be reminded!

This was, as I have previously written, a quick one-day up-and-back trip. Since I had a four-hour drive ahead of me at the end of the day, I finished up in the Valley right around sunset, and this grove of dogwood trees was my final stop of the day. I have photographed here before, and I’m especially fond of one of the big conifers hiding behind the leafy dogwoods.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.